Without electricity or running water, a Victorian village of tiny homes sits just outside of Ithaca, N.Y.

Karenville has nearly two dozen miniature buildings, including a church, a cafe, a hotel, a barn, a silo, an outhouse, three huts and nine tiny houses. The whimsical architect and owner, Karen Thurnheer, created the village, which she has called Karenville, building-by-building over the past three decades.

“I had no idea Karenville would become what it is today — the buildings were just fun weekend projects!” she said. 

Thurnheer thought her minimalist lifestyle would not appeal to many on Airbnb, but to date, Karenville has hosted over 4,000 guests in her tiny homes, which she rents out. The least expensive accommodation and smallest house, The Corn Crib, starts at $35 a night on Airbnb and has a garden on its roof. The most expensive house, Karen’s own cabin, starts at $90 a night on Airbnb.

The village sits on the old dairy farm where Thurnheer and her brothers lived and built treehouses as children. The buildings are made from wood from the family farm; everything else is salvaged from family members, guests, antique shops, roadsides and auctions. For example, the greenhouse windows came from her parent’s old kitchen and dining room, before they remodeled, she said. 

“Walking through Karenville is like walking down memorabilia lane… Everybody likes the little details. These cookie-cutter houses and shoebox-looking stores we see so much of are lacking details and personality. They are just plain square blocks. There’s no personality, design, theme or detail,” she said.

Unlikely neighbors and activities

With no neighbors in sight, the village borders Danby State Forest and a field of Queen Ann’s lace. A miniature horse named Little Tangles, a goat named Edgar, a peacock, a peahen and chickens live on the property, along with a herd of guinea pigs, which live in boxes painted like old western towns. But the fireflies are the guests’ favorite.

“So many people cannot get over how many fireflies there are in June and July. They come specifically for the lightning bugs and stars. Guests say they can’t tell where the lighting bugs end and the stars begin,” she said.